Folk beliefs and customs

The name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: folk customs

Applicant: Xiamen City, Fujian Province

Item No.: 992

Project No.: Ⅹ - 85

Time of publication: 2011 (the third batch)

Category: folk customs

Region: Fujian Province

Type: Extension Project

Applicant: Xiamen City, Fujian Province

Protection unit: Xiamen Minnan Culture Research Association

A brief introduction to folk customs (sending off the king ship from Fujian and Taiwan)

Applicant: Xiamen City, Fujian Province

Sending off the king ship from Fujian and Taiwan is a folk custom of worshiping "hunting on behalf of heaven" in the coastal villages of Xiamen City, Fujian Province.

The belief of "Wang Ye" is widely spread in the coastal areas of Southern Fujian and fishing villages in Taiwan, especially in southern Taiwan. It is also known as Mazu belief in Central Taiwan. As the saying goes, "Nan Wang Ye, Zhong Mazu." Huazang nunnery, lvcuo village, Xike Town, Tong'an District, Xiamen City, has a great influence in Southern Fujian Province.

There are many theories about the origin of "Wang Ye", such as that Wang Ye is the representative of the emperor of heaven to observe the great God of good and evil in the world. Most temples dedicated to the Lord are called "Dai Tian Fu", and the Lord is also called "Dai Tian Xun Shou".

Sending the king's boat is a folk ritual of sending plague and praying for blessings. In the second volume of the records of envoys in the Taiwan Strait during the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty, "in the third year, the king's boat was prepared for the ceremony." Qianlong's Haicheng county annals records in detail the ceremony of sending off the king's boat held in the winter of 1769.

Most of the activities are held once every three or four years. The ceremony is held on a certain day in the fixed lunar month by throwing a boat. To make a wooden or paper King boat, please go to the king and carry all kinds of daily necessities. The believers will accompany them with drumming and send them to the seaside for burning.

The project is of great significance to inherit the fine tradition of the Chinese nation, enhance the cohesion of the Chinese nation and promote the reunification of the motherland.